What's all this about?
BMW is doing its bit to ensure drivers don't get lost by fitting satellite navigation as standard across the entire range. From July the 2 Series Convertible and 2 Series Active Tourer will get standard navigation and the Z4 range will be fitted with BMW Professional Navigation. The roll-out will be complete by September when the 1 Series range and 2 Series Coupé get navigation as standard.
Sounds good, tell me more.
Standard navigation is provided by a 6.5-inch high definition screen with iDrive controller and Traffic Message Channel. Professional Navigation adds a larger 8.8-inch screen with iDrive Touch controller, Real Time Traffic Information (RTTI) and BMW Online including BMW Remote Services; allowing drivers to send navigation addresses directly to their vehicle via Google or the BMW My Remote app. All systems feature 'eCall', which puts the car in contact with emergency services either by pressing the 'SOS' button on the head unit or when sensors detect a serious crash.
BMW has reduced the cost to upgrade to Professional Navigation for the 1 and 2 Series as well. The 1 Series Sports Hatch and 2 Series Coupé and Convertible can be upgraded for £900. For the 2 Series Active Tourer and Gran Tourer the cost is £1,395, including the BMW Head up Display.
Used car experts CAP predict that BMW residual values will benefit from the equipment upgrade. Jeff Knight, Forecasting Editor Cars, CAP, commented: "BMW introducing navigation across its entire model range is a first for any mainstream manufacturer in the UK and will inevitably pave the way for others to follow. On-board navigation systems now offer so much more technology than previously seen with the likes of 2D & 3D navigation map displays, traffic information and particularly with BMW standard e-call functionality which is a key safety feature. As well as having standard navigation across the range all BMW models will see an improvement on their residual value from between £300 to £600 (model dependant) so this is good news all round for the customer."
John Lambert - 29 Apr 2015